The Secret to a Sexy Hip Key

Heh heh heh – I DO love watching my Dear Danglers first attempts at hip keys – ya’ll are hilarious! I say that with lots of love. 🙂 There’s a whole lotta flailing going on up there! What to do? “To nail your key, hit all three!”

The 3 Parts of a Sexy Hip Key

I’m not going to go deeply into the physical mechanics of a hip key – your instructor can take you through that. But I WILL let you in on some secrets to make it smokin’ hot!

1. Red lipstick. OH – and a solid first position I like to call, “Look at your butt.” First, make sure your elbows are glued to your waist. Let’s say I’m keying right. I bring my fabric to the right side of my body (as if I were inverting). I then bring my right leg straight forward, my left leg back. Now, look at your butt – there should be a fabric on it. Legs should be straight here (bent legs = Poopy Technique).

2. Sassy librarian hair. AND a very wide straddle! After the fabric is on your butt & you scissor it between your legs, you should do the biggest, most indelicate straddle you possibly can. Your legs should be even, and straight out in front of you. DON’T allow one leg to go higher than the other – you should look as if you’re sitting on the floor.

Troubleshooting

1. You’ve got to walk before you can fly, Grasshopper! In-the-air hip keys require a solid inversion/back straddle. Not in the cards for you yet? Practice the position by wrapping it on the ground.

2. In step two, make sure you’re not dropping one leg in an effort to haul the other one over! Not only is it unproductive, but it’s spastic (in an ugly way, not a charming French-Canadian circus school kind of way).

3. Shallow straddle – In step two, that wild, indelicate straddle should scoot the fabric all the way to the upper thigh. Don’t be shy, girl! Hint: if the fabric keeps winding up around your knees, straddle for all you’re worth!

4. SPEED KEY! I’m sad to say that your commitment to speed is no substitute for proper, sexy form. Also? No matter how fast you go, I still see you. Slow down, speed demon.

5. Not enough of an invert – rolling too early. If you’re not able to tap the fabric with the far leg as it kicks over, you’re not in a good position (good = fabric tail falling squarely over the lower back). Fun fix? Instead of rolling to the side to complete the key, invert straight back to train yourself to get your hips up high enough. Once that becomes easy-peasy, add the key to the side back in.

6. Terrifyingly bent legs. No. No no no no no. NO. Shut. that. down. Work for straight legs every time.

Well, that’s all I have to say about that. Hope it wasn’t too confusing!Maybe I’ll post a demo pic or two when I get back. I’m off to Wheel Weekend in Chicago! I’m super excited, and super nervous. Just hoping not to embarass myself too badly! I’ll report back! Love and pull-ups, Laura

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5 comments on “The Secret to a Sexy Hip Key”

Thanks for this artical Laura!! Hip keys are a pain in the butt for me and you broke it down nicely, I’ll give it another go. I usually end up with the fabric too low down my thighs, I think I need a bigger straddle!

ohmygosh! You described it so well. Hip key is the biggest giveaway when one has sloppy technique. What a clean, concise step by step and troubleshoot! Lately, I’ve been working on meat hooks for building strength and improving my form. They’re helping me set up the boost; I never realized until a coach showed me recently: You should gain height, not lose it! It changed everything!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂